Assertion and defense mechanism preference.

Abstract

This study investigated the hypothesis that assertive and nonaasertive individuals differ in the defense mechanisms they most typically rely on when confronted with interpersonal stress and conflict. The Defense Mechanism Inventory was administered to four groups of subjects (n = 10 per group) representing assertive and nonassertive males and females. As predicted, assertive males and females both endorsed the most adaptive defense mechanism cluster of Principalization (intellectualization, rationalization", isolation of affect), whereas nonassertive males and females endorsed the more primitive and so-• daily ineffective defense mechanism clusters of Turning Against Object and Turning Against Self, respectively. Assertives also demonstrated greater levels of intellectual achievement than their nonassertive peers, especially between the female groups. Recommendations are offered as tp how these initial findings may contribute to a fuller understanding of assertive and nonassertive populations and how they may buttress existing assertion training strategies.

The Development of Defense Mechanisms

“…The performance of males and females on the DMI has been compared in 13 different investigations with 16 different subject samples (Bogo et ai., 1970;Cramer, 1979;Cramer & Carter, 1978;Dudley, 1978;Frank et ai., 1984;Gieser & Ihilevich, 1969;Gieser & Sacks, 1973;Martin, 1977;Massong et ai., 1982b;Morelli & Andrews, 1982;Schueler et ai., 1982;Sugerman, Sheldon, & Roth, 1975;Weissman, Ritter, & Gordon, 1971). In 12 of the subject groups, males scored higher on TAO than females, and females scored higher on T AS than males.…”

Defense Mechanisms, Behavior, and Affect in Young Adulthood

“…A second question that has not been addressed in these previous studies of defense is whether the use of a particular defense mechanism has the same behavioral and psychological implications for both genders. Gender differences in the frequency of defense use have been found, with males using externalizing defenses, such as projection and turning against the object, more frequently than females, who are more likely to use internalizing defenses, such as turning against the self (Cramer, 1991a;Gleser & Ihilevich, 1969;Levit, 1991;Massong, Dickson, Ritzler, & Layne, 1982). However, whether the use of the same defense has the same implications for men and women has generally not been studied.…”

Social Exclusion and the Deconstructed State: Time Perception, Meaninglessness, Lethargy, Lack of Emotion, and Self-Awareness.

“…People may respond with empty, neutral, and even bored feelings when their need to belong is thwarted, rather than the acute emotional distress that at first seemed plausible. In fact, such numbness could ward off the emotional distress that might otherwise arise by defensively isolating affect and keeping negative feelings out of awareness (e.g., Massong, Dickson, Ritzler, & Layne, 1982). This state has been characterized as one of cognitive deconstruction, which is marked not only by a lack of emotion but also by an altered sense of time, an immersion in the present rather than past or future, a relative absence of meaningful thought, and lethargy, all of which may be driven by the attempt to escape from aversive self-awareness (Baumeister, 1990(Baumeister, , 1991; see also Vallacher & Wegner, 1985, 1987.…”